How to Upgrade Your Home’s Exterior on a Budget

But you don’t have a lot of money in the bank, so you may feel as though it’s hopeless. It’s not! There are many ways that you can upgrade your house’s exterior while still on a budget. Read on to get some great ideas.

1. Have a few extra bucks that you can sink into a project? Consider re-painting your entire home. A fresh coat or two of paint can go a long way to making your house look brand-new. Can’t afford to paint the entire exterior? Don’t sweat it—consider repainting the shutters, or just stick to the trim around the doors and windows. And don’t rule out repainting your picket fence, either!

2. Do a quick once-over on your home’s exterior. Are the gutters in good shape, or could they use some work? Replace any gutters that may be hanging down, and if they need to be cleaned, go ahead and clean them up. Are the shutters attached to the home, or do they need to be reattached? Could the shutters use a quick coat of pant? Such small details can really give your home a much more appealing overall feel.

3. Check out the landscaping. And not just your yard—takes a good look at your front entryway and sidewalk, too. Spending just a few hours cleaning up your yard and concealing recycle bins or trash cans can make your home look far more attractive from the outside. To get the best, most general view of your home’s landscaping, stand in the street and look from there to see if you could use some extra mulch, a few potted plants here and there, or if you simply need to do some raking and tidying up.

Here are a few more details that can help to update your home’s exterior:

• Invest in a fountain to liven up your back yard. This can be particularly appealing if you live on a noisy street, as the trickling water sound will help to cover up passing cars and other noise.

• Add some solar-powered lights along the walkway leading to your front door. This will give an extra appeal to your house, particularly at nighttime.

• Spend a weekend staining your deck to give it new life. Be sure to pressure-wash it first to remove stuck-on dirt.

• Pick up a garden hose and spray off your vinyl siding. You’ll be amazing at how fresh and clean it looks after just a simple bath.

• Put up some shutters if your home doesn’t already have them. Shutters had a refined, classy look to virtually any home.

• Focus on the front door. Slap on a fresh coat of paint, or buy an entirely new front door—it’ll add immediate appeal to your house’s façade.

As you can see, there are plenty of options that won’t break the bank—but will go a long way to upgrading your home’s exterior.

David Raju - About Author:Dan Seitz is a freelance writer who covers a variety of home improvement topics, like Gutters, gutter repair and installing gutter guards.